Wednesday, 30 July 2014

Getting lots of rest

Having recovered (mostly) from the surgery, headed back to
the gym (starting out gently), and got into a head space where I can start
focusing on getting some contract work, I came down with a cold – my first for
a year or two. I headed down to the
pharmacy to get some medication that would help me deal with the symptoms, and
maybe help me sleep too. The assistant
went through the usual questions – was I on any medication, etc – and then gave
the usual advice – take in plenty of fluids, get lots of rest.

“That is, get lots of rest if you can,” the kindly shop assistant emphasised. (Perhaps I looked tired?)

“Yes, I can, actually.
And I will,” I said.

She looked surprised.
I guess it is unusual – a woman able to take time for herself and rest
and recover appropriately from an illness, especially in the middle of the
school holidays.

And I reflected that this is one of the advantages of not
having children. First, I don’t get sick
very often, as I don’t have children bringing home all the illnesses from
school. (The reason I got sick I assume
was that my 6-year-old niece was sick when she visited). Second, when or if I do get sick, or need
surgery, I am able to follow doctor’s orders, and get rest and take things
easy. This certainly helped my recovery
from surgery – and I think it helped my recovery from the cold. Afternoon naps were possible, and so was sleeping late in the morning. My cold is largely gone now, ten days later, and I'm
heading back to the gym in an hour or two.

When it is cold and I'm feeling physically and emotionally miserable, I have to say that sometimes, not having children is a big advantage!

5 comments:

I sort of think not having kids actually opens us up to get common illness a little harder because our immune systems are not built up as much. Regardless - I am with you...that is one plus - rest and recovery are not that difficult to achieve!

This is the one thing I've been struggling with is the constant illness. I just recovered from Hand, Foot & Mouth disease, which is rare in adults and contracted mainly through daycares. Anyway, yes, this is a big plus.

True, true. I'm glad that you've been able to go back the gym again. YAAAAAAYYY!!! I love the endorphins after a good work out session. :-) I remember the last time I had cough for weeks on end. I went to the pharmacy to buy some medication and the pharmacist told me, "Oh, but this is not recommended for children." I thanked her, but wondered if she thought I bought them for my kids ha ha ha ha ha...but yeah, especially when I'm sick and I don't feel like cooking or anything much, I feel glad that there aren't small kids that I have to take care of. When I don't feel like cooking, my husband can prepare his own food.

I love lying in bed with the cats, being miserable, and not needing to worry about anyone. My husband takes care of himself and I can experiment with cold medications. I don't know how parents manage when they are sick.

This is definitely an advantage of being childless (and now unemployed!). It's a relief to know now that if/when Aunt Flo shows up, I can stay on the couch with a bottle of ibuprofen & be as lazy as I want to be. ;)

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About Me

This is my blog on living and loving life without children after infertility. Currently I'm a blogger, a self-employed businessperson, amateur photographer, and traveller.

I blog on A Separate Life about my everyday life, but this is a space for thoughts on my No Kidding lifestyle, the good and the bad, remembering what was lost, and celebrating what I have.

My husband and I are the stereotypical couple without children who love to travel. I am (at) travellingMali on Instagram and there I post photos of various trips internationally, past and present, and of NZ travels, along with the occasional photos from where I live.

In 2013 I travelled in Europe and the Middle East for five months, and kept a blog at Lemons to Limoncello.

I also had a travelblog some years ago, but stopped posting in 2012, which you can see at Mali's Travelalphablog. I'm hoping to start a travel blog again, so watch this space!